Journalists hacked into the voicemails of Milly Dowler's parents in order to follow them as they retraced their daughter's final moments, it has been claimed.
Speaking at the Leveson inquiry into phone hacking, Barrister David Sherborne said this was a "terrible intrusion" at a time of immense grief.
"In the weeks following her disappearance, when the reporting frenzy had calmed down, the couple deiced to repeat the walk Milly had done the day she was abducted," he told the inquiry.
"This was no formal reconstitution... it was not for publicity. it was a private act, a very private moment, something the couple had decided to do themselves to try to come to terms with their teenage daughter's disappearance."
He added: "Their moment of grief was a photo opportunity too good to resist."
"Somehow the press found out they were undertaking that last walk on that particular day at that particular time.
Sherborne said that their voicemails had been listened to and that on the same day the News of the World published an article under the headline "The Longest Walk" complete with pictures of the distressed couples.
"First, stolen voicemail messages, why not then steal these previous moments to? ethically, what's the difference."